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Joy Preparatory Academy

Public, Charter, Alternative Grades PK, KG-12

1197^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Alternative Schools

Better than 20% of Michigan alternative schools

Summary

Joy Preparatory Academy is a small, Pre-K through 12th-grade public school academy in Detroit, MI, serving 161 students as its own district, where nearly all students (over 99%) come from low-income households.

This school stands out for its small class sizes, with a favorable 13.3:1 student-to-teacher ratio that allows for more individualized attention. However, the biggest challenge is attendance: while chronic absenteeism has dropped dramatically from 55.2% in 2021-2022 to 32.3% in 2024-2025, it still exceeds the state average of 27.9%. Academically, results are mixed and can swing significantly from year to year, which is common for a school this size. The standout bright spot is 7th-grade English Language Arts, where 64.29% of students were proficient in 2024-2025—far outpacing the state average of 39.2% and nearby schools like Caniff Liberty Academy (30.6%) and David Ellis Academy (17.65%). Eighth-grade social studies also beat the state average, with 53.85% proficiency. Yet, in core areas like 3rd-grade ELA (21.43%) and 4th-grade math (13.64%), proficiency remains well below state averages, and math consistently lags behind reading across grade levels.

Despite spending over $15,000 per student—more than nearby alternatives like Caniff Liberty Academy ($13,116) and Bridge Impact ($9,986)—academic gains haven't fully materialized, likely due to the high poverty rate and attendance issues. Compared to The School at Marygrove (1.35 miles away), Joy Prep lags in nearly every subject. However, it significantly outperforms Michigan Virtual Charter Academy, where 3rd-grade ELA proficiency was just 3.98% versus Joy Prep's 21.43%. For families seeking a structured, in-person environment with improving attendance trends, Joy Prep offers a supportive setting, though parents should be prepared for inconsistent test scores from year to year.

161

Students ?

13.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

Community Eligibility

All students receive free meals (2024-25) ?

All students in Michigan receive free school meals.

15055 Dexter Ave
Detroit, MI 48238-2124

(313) 340-0023

District: Joy Preparatory Academy

Racial breakdown:

African American:

98.8%

Hispanic:

0.6%

American Indian:

0.6%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Joy Preparatory Academy to nearby alternative schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 1st percentile in 2017 → 56th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 55 percentile points since 2017

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (31% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (20th percentile)

!Math scores 22 pts below the Michigan average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school31%

District avg31%

Michigan avg40%

Elementary school

1,197^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Bottom 20%▲ up 16 pts since 2016

From bottom 4% (2016) to bottom 20% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

393^rd of 896

Michigan public middle schools ?

Top 44%▲ up 26 pts since 2016

From bottom 30% (2016) to top 44% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	18.9	1197 of 1492	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.4	1073 of 1488	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.9	1082 of 1486	27.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	36.4	900 of 1470	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	7.1	1420 of 1448	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	3.5	1456 of 1466	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	6.3	1488 of 1548	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	12.8	1407 of 1580	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	7.0	1461 of 1533	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	10.7	1442 of 1563	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	11.5	1460 of 1566	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	6.7	1506 of 1552	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	12.3	1469 of 1552	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	5.8	1545 of 1589	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	3.0	1560 of 1577	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	5.4	1535 of 1565	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	2.8	1530 of 1545	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	41.3	205 of 388	47.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	55.3	113 of 369	69.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	52.5	131 of 348	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	73.2	51 of 321	84.1%	★★★★☆
2018	24.3	398 of 475	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2024	31.1	925 of 1342	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	7.6	1390 of 1443	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	28.9	973 of 1352	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	40.6	786 of 1346	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.2	866 of 1381	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	53.8	547 of 1350	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	9.5	1341 of 1397	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2024	34.2	870 of 1347	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	10.4	1325 of 1446	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	52.1	393 of 896	56.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	64.7	259 of 890	70.9%	★★★★☆
2018	6.8	829 of 838	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	14.4	711 of 821	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	31.3	624 of 894	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2015	15.7	769 of 919	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	10.8	829 of 921	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	13.0	819 of 919	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	12.8	822 of 900	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	8.7	812 of 858	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	7.2	811 of 851	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	11.6	791 of 847	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	8.5	787 of 839	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	8.3	775 of 823	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	8.2	765 of 806	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	82.0	37 of 337	89.0%	★★★★☆
2025	84.9	27 of 338	92.0%	★★★★★
2018	18.7	334 of 366	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	6.8	766 of 794	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	71.5	152 of 834	81.8%	★★★★☆
2025	80.5	94 of 832	88.7%	★★★★☆
2018	8.5	787 of 815	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	7.9	771 of 797	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Elementary school

African American (2026)47th percentile+27 vs school

Male (2024)35th percentile+8 vs school

Female (2024)31st percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)28th percentile+8 vs school

Middle school

African American (2026)89th percentile+33 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)82nd percentile+26 vs school

Female (2018)4th percentile~ school

Male (2018)3rd percentile~ school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies54%+15 vs state

Science31%-9 vs state

English Language Arts27%-13 vs state

Math14%-22 vs state

★

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Schools Near Joy Preparatory Academy

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking ()				Ranking ()				PSAT English Language Arts (2026)			PSAT Mathematics (2026)			SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	M-Step English Language Arts (2026)					M-Step Math (2026)					M-Step Science (2026)			M-Step Social Studies (2026)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	SchoolDigger Rating ()	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSAT English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSAT English Language Arts 9th Grade	PSAT English Language Arts 10th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 8th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 9th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 10th Grade	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Science 8th Grade	M-Step Science 11th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 8th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Joy Preparatory Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	PK, KG-12	15055 Dexter Ave	Detroit	48238	Wayne County	Joy Preparatory Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 340-0023	161	12	13.3	—	0 (0.0%)	159 (98.8%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	61.5			390.0					21.4	18.2	25.0	31.3	38.9	1283.3	13.6	1461.1	1572.7	1669.7	1476.5	30.8		1470.8	53.9		$00	$00	$00
The School at Marygrove	Public, Alternative	K-12	8425 W McNichols Rd	Detroit	48221	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 335-1331	606	38	15.9	68.3%	8 (1.3%)	597 (98.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)								(n/a)		48.7	55.6		9.6	15.2	55.7	10.1	28.8	46.3	48.8			39.7	43.9	30.2			27.9		19.2	23.8		31.3	$21,554	$2,272	$19,282
David Ellis Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	PK, KG-12	18977 Schaefer Hwy	Detroit	48235	Wayne County	David Ellis Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 450-0642	206	15	14.2	92.7%	0 (0.0%)	205 (99.5%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	37.5			364.4					20.0	25.0	14.3	31.8	60.0	25.0	1375.5	1462.4	1570.4	35.0	1472.6	18.8		1465.9	18.8		$15,930	$2,079	$13,851
DPSCD Virtual School	Public, Virtual, Alternative	K-12	9026 Woodward Ave	Detroit	48202	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	Yes	No	(313) 873-6897	176	20	9.0	76.1%	6 (3.4%)	159 (90.3%)	10 (5.7%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	60.0	31.8	50.0	15.0	347.3	364.2	37.0	355.2		1370.5	1465.9	16.7	14.3		1361.6	1449.5	1559.7	14.3	1469.4	23.5	2072.5	1461.6	41.2	19.1	$27,470	$1,336	$26,134
University Yes Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	14717 Curtis St	Detroit	48235	Wayne County	University Yes Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 270-2556	388	19	20.4	91.2%	0 (0.0%)	385 (99.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.8%)								(n/a)	19.6			5.9					25.5	25.9	18.5	18.2	20.0	46.8	25.9	20.4	31.8	28.9	13.0	13.7		9.3	27.5		$17,279	$2,425	$14,854
Caniff Liberty Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	PK, KG-9	2650 Caniff St	Hamtramck	48212	Wayne County	Caniff Liberty Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(248) 327-7673	590	19	30.6	95.6%	362 (61.4%)	48 (8.1%)	1 (0.2%)	169 (28.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (1.7%)								(n/a)	52.5			25.0					40.6	33.9	33.3	24.5	26.6	38.6	50.0	46.4	26.5	26.6	41.1	14.1		17.9	31.3		$13,116	$1,877	$11,239
Bridge Impact	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	3105 Carpenter St	Detroit	48212	Wayne County	Bridge Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 462-6100	392	10	39.2	—	313 (79.8%)	7 (1.8%)	4 (1.0%)	67 (17.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	37.5	24.2	32.0	340.6	350.6	10.0	17.5	371.0	38.9	1366.5	1471.0	25.0	26.5	27.8	1357.2	1458.8	15.6	11.8	1471.5	1768.6	2068.7	1455.8	1780.6	9.5	$9,986	$41	$9,945
Frontier International Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	13200 Conant St	Detroit	48212	Wayne County	Frontier International Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 462-6300	737	45	16.4	—	571 (77.5%)	18 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	146 (19.8%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)		35.3	27.7		14.1	12.8	27.0	10.9	24.1	1373.9	17.9			20.7	23.8	32.1			1474.6		16.3	1465.3		30.4	$12,358	$1,847	$10,510
Michigan Virtual Charter Academy	Public, Virtual, Charter, Alternative	K-12	1620 E Elza Ave	Hazel Park	48030	Oakland County	Michigan Virtual Charter Academy	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	(616) 309-1600	3,199	163	19.6	76.4%	1,601 (50.0%)	923 (28.9%)	315 (9.8%)	44 (1.4%)	20 (0.6%)	1 (0.0%)	295 (9.2%)								(n/a)	46.6	37.6	50.4	6.8	7.0	8.4	26.8	386.3	4.0	12.4	13.5	14.4	13.4	2.3	6.2	5.0	6.0	5.6	9.4	15.9	18.7	3.5	23.9	19.9	$10,717	$1,212	$9,506
Advantage Alternative Program	Public, Alternative	K-12	1620 E Elza Ave	Hazel Park	48030	Oakland County	Hazel Park School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(248) 658-5280	150	6	25.0	84.0%	29 (19.3%)	109 (72.7%)	11 (7.3%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)		323.1	18.8		289.4	320.6	382.4	333.8													2070.5			2077.3	$15,714	$863	$14,851

Frequently Asked Questions about Joy Preparatory Academy

What district is Joy Preparatory Academy in?

Joy Preparatory Academy

What is the racial makeup of Joy Preparatory Academy?

Students at Joy Preparatory Academy are 99% African American.

How many students attend Joy Preparatory Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 161 students attended Joy Preparatory Academy.

Is Joy Preparatory Academy a good school?

Joy Preparatory Academy ranks in the bottom 19.8% of Michigan alternative schools.

Rate Joy Preparatory Academy!

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

2025–26 M-Step, PSAT & SAT test scoresSep 4, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataJan 6, 2026

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Michigan Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.